Cañon City business owner on hold as council decides cannabis cultivation regs
Rooms to Grow rents space to local, non-commercial growers.
Alison Helsley sat at the Cañon City City Council meeting this week, prepared to meet the members of the new Marijuana Cultivation Regulation Committee — the group who will decide whether or not her company, Rooms to Grow, will stay open.
But instead of introducing the members, the city council surprised many by announcing they would review letters of interest, and name the committee members on Sept. 7. The committee will then have “two to three months” to make recommendations, leaving Helsley perplexed, and keeping her business in limbo.
“Instead of announcing committee members as planned, they appeared to be confused as to what the committee was being formed for, what my business was, and why I’d agreed to work with them in the first place,” said Helsley. “They made it sound like I am a recreational cultivation center, rather than a landlord offering personal growers and caregivers a location to grow outside a neighborhood.”
The story of Rooms to Grow goes back to last April, when Helsley had the idea to open a space for non-commercial growers, after her own rental home was trashed by a grower.
“When I realized state law did not require growers to grow in their residence, but in a secure and identifiable location, I decided to create an option,” she said.
She bought the old Rocky Mountain Cannabis location, in the Dawson Ranch area of town, and worked with city officials, prior to the building purchase. She opened for business in September. That same month, the council announced a new ordinance limiting grows to neighborhoods.
“The council announced its desire to pass an ordinance requiring personal growers to grow in residential neighborhoods. I went to the council and asked them to change the verbiage to allow personal growers to rent space and grow on my property, as my goal was to provide an additional location for personal growers outside of neighborhoods,” Helsley said. “The council passed the ordinance but agreed to let me continue to operate. Doug Dotson, the then city administrator, confirmed I could continue to operate when they passed the ordinance, stating we would create a permit while I operated, to grant formal exception to the ordinance.”
Then Dotson resigned.
“I was told I could continue to operate while they searched for a new administrator but no progress would be made on the permit until he arrived.”
Helsley said when Tony O’Rourke began the job on June 1, he drafted an agreement that asked her to curtail her business while the city created the permit, to which she agreed.
“They agreed to allow me to continue to operate with existing tenants, but asked for no new tenants until we had completed the permit. We would also form a committee made up of a variety of backgrounds, to work together to create the permit. The committee would then be available down the road to discuss and research marijuana-related issues as a group and make recommendations to council on a variety of topics. I believe the city is focused on the future and working with me to create an option for personal growers, in the event they would elect to grow outside of neighborhoods.”
“We are not pulling back anything,” said Councilmember Kathleen Schumacher. This new committee has nothing to do with Alison. We are simply taking the day-to-day work off the council. We aren’t the 80-year-old men who used to be on the council, we all have jobs. We are setting up this committee to strengthen the language on cannabis.”
But Helsley was mentioned, by name, in a city council memo on the formation of the committee, dated Aug. 12, from newly appointed City Administrator Tony O’Rourke: “In the interest of offering the public a safe and secure alternative to single family marijuana grows, the City Council has expressed interest in working with Alison Helsley and the community at-large in the formation of zoning regulations and special use conditions to permit cultivation of marijuana in either commercial or industrial zones.”
“I think both parties have some responsibility with miscommunication on this,” said Councilmember Ashley Smith. “It’s a given that Alison will be on this committee.”
Smith says, at it stands now, Helsley’s business is illegal; in spite of any agreements she had with previous city officials.
“We asked her to help us come up with a solution, but I think there is a disconnect. She felt her business met the requirements, and we disagreed. City council is considering working with her to make sure that it’s in compliance. Legally, we could shut her down today,” Smith said.
Adding to the commentary, Smith says the city recently conducted a survey asking its citizens a variety of questions, including whether they support commercial grows if it takes them out of a residential home. She says the results will be known in mid September.
“It’s important that we represent the community,” Smith added.
Helsley says since she can’t accept any new growers, she is barely covering her overhead; so she told her renters to remove their plants, about 120 in total. She estimates she is still losing about $2,000 a month with an empty building.
“The medicinal patients who want to rent grow space, are in an awful predicament,” Helsley said. “I had applicants with kids who have seizures, that were told their caregiver couldn’t grow for them anymore due to plant count ordinances. I had to turn them away. Their strain is not available in stores — their strain stops seizures in less than 30 seconds. When they run out if medicine they will not have access to it and I fear for their children.
I only agreed to work with the council because I wanted regulation and to be transparent with city. The city has essentially put me out of business by making requirements that I lose money over next six months. At this point, I will most likely sue the city if they do not hold up to their end of the bargain.”
